Car-roof.



D. MURPHY CAR ROOF. APPLICATION FILED nm'l'z. 19m.

Patented Mar. 12, 1918.

if? I .UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DWIGHT MURPHY, OF PITTSBURGH, IENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB 'I'O P. H. MURPHY COMPANY, OF PARNASSUS, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

CAR-ROOF.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DWIGHT Muurlrr, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Pittsburgh, in. the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Car-Roofs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates particularly to roofs comprising separate roof sheets usuall made ofsheet steel or iron, which are lai side by side on the roof substructure and are connected by raised seams.

The object of the invention is to lighten the weight of the roof and to lengthen its period of service without increasing its first cost or cost of maintenance.

The invention consists in roof sheets having a body portion of so-called plastic waterproof material, such as a heavy grade of roofing felt, waterproofed paper board, in rated canvas, fiber board, binders board, or the like, which is soft at some stage of its manufacture, and more or less flexible in its finished condition. The edges of the roof sheets are reinforced with strips of sheet metal, such as steel, iron or copper,

which are either folded around or embedded in the body portion of the roof sheets preferably in its plastic condition. The invention further consists in the form of seam between the roof sheets, and in the means for securing the roof sheets in place, as hereinafter described.

Further objects and details of the invention appear in connection with the following description of the ear roof shown in the accompanying drawings, and what the in vention consists in is more particularly defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings, wherein the same reference characters designate similar parts in the several views, Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a roof of a box car embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of an eaves portion of theroof, on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross-section of a seam between two roof sheets, on the line 3-3 in Fig. 1. l

The car shown in the drawings has a wooden roof substructure consisting of side plates 10, carlines, and ridge pole 11, supporting roof sheathing boards 12; but any Specification of Letters Patent.

suitable construction of substructure may be used for supporting the roof.

The roof sheets 13 consist of sheets of waterproof material with their side margins reinforced by strips 14 of sheet metal. The waterproof material which forms the body portion of the sheet is the kind commonly designated as plastic but is hereinafter referred to as non-metallic, al-' though it is consistent with my invention that the body portion of the sheets may be reinforced with metal members embedded therein. The sheet metal margins of the roof sheets are bent up to form flanges 15. The roof sheets are laid on the substructure crosswise of the car with the side flanges 15 spaced apart, and seam covers 16'are arranged over the flanges of adjacent roof sheets, spanning'the spaces between them. The ends of the roof sheets are reinforced by strips 17 of sheet metal and are turned down over the eaves of the car. The seam covers are supported on battens 18 which are laid on the substructure in the spaces between the roof sheets. The seam covers and battens are secured to the car by bolts or othermeans at the ridge, and the ends 19 of the seam covers are turned down and bolted or otherwise secured to the side of the car.

The side walls of the seam covers have out-turned flanges 20 along their lower edges which rest on the metal strips 14 of the roof sheets inside of the flanges 15. The inner edges 21 of the metal strips 14 are turned over the'flanges 20 of the seamcovers, thereby forming a water-tight joint. Space is left between the bat-tens and flanges 15 of the roof sheets, and between the flanges 15 and the side walls of the seam covers to permit slight lateral movement of the roof sheets with respect to the seam covers. The scam covers securely hold the roof sheets down on the substructure, but do not clamp them rigidly.

' The runnin boards 22 may be, attached to saddles WhlCh rest upon the battens and seam covers astride of the ridge, thereby entirely clearing the roof sheets.

Among the advantages of the roof described above is the absence'of fastening means directly engaging the bodies of the -roof sheets, and entire freedom of the bodies of the roof sheets for movement on the substructure, thus eliminating tearing and Patented Mar. 12, 1918. Application filed May 12, 1916. Serial No. 96,972 I chafing. All the wear and tear of the fastenmeans comes on the metal edge strips w ere, even if holes are worn or rusted through the metal, the body material will revent passage of water through the roof. iloies or breaks in the bodies of the sheets ca 'n be mended by cementing thin sheets of plastic material over them without removmg the roof sheets from the roof. t is evident that the roof sheets may be held in place on the roof by other means their the seam covers shown and described. 'above, and that the reinforcing strips around the edges of the roof sheets may have other'forms than those shown, and the invention is not restricted to the forms of joints and attaching means shown and described. c

lVhat I claim as in invention and desire to secure by Letters atent is:

1. A roof comprisin a substructure, roof sheets loosely arrange on said substructure, and fastcnings for said roof sheets, each roof sheet consisting of a non-metallic body portion of the kind. described and metal re- 1nforcing strips along its ed es.

2. A mor comprisin a su structure, roof sheet-s loosely arrange on said substructure,

and loose fastenings for said roof sheets,

1 body portions reinforced by metal strips along their edges, and joint strips covering the edges of said roof sheets and cooperatin with said metal strips to form loose joints.

4. A roof comprisin a substructure, roof sheets loosely arrange on said vsubstructure, said roof sheets having non metallic body ortions 0f the kind described reinforced y metal strips alon their edges, and joint strips'covering the e ges of said roof sheets and bearing on said metal edge strips, said joint strips being secured to said substruc ture.

'5. As an article of manufacture, a roof sheet for a car roof, said roof sheet consistin of a non-metallic body portion of the kind described and metal edge members secured thereto and constituting therewith a distinct unit.

6. A roof sheet for a car roof, said roof sheet comprising a flexible body portion and continuous metal reinforcing edges permanently secured thereto, said body portion being made of plastic material of the kind described and said metal edges being flanged to stiffen the margins of the sheets and form lips for stopping the passage of water.

7. .A. roof comprisin a substructure, roof sheets loosely arrange on. said substructure, said roof sheets having flexible non-metallic body portions reinforced by metal strips along their edges, and joint" strips covering the edges of said roof sheets and bearing on said metal edge strips, said joint strips being secured to said substructure, and having portions at their ends extending down over the caves and spaced from the sides of the car, and flanged stiffening strips of metal on the ends of the roof sheets and extending down over the eaves, the ends of said stifi ening flanges lapping under the seam covers in the spaces between. their downwardly extending end portions and the sides of the car.

Signed at New Kensington, Pennsylvania, this 8th day of May, 1916.

DWIGHT MURPHY. 

